This year is the 25th anniversary of the 1986 “one strike away” series with the Mets and I am going to post a weekly “This Week in Red Sox 86”, highlighting how that year unfolded.
May 17
Roger Clemens’ 20-strikeout performance on April 29 propelled the Sox on an 11-2 run that brought them from 8-8 to 19-10 on May 11. The next week, they had a short lapse, losing 3 of 4 to California and Texas. They then turned it around against the Rangers on the 17th, as Oil Can Boyd hurled a complete game 8-2 victory.
The Sox now stood at 21-13 and led the division by a half game over the Yankees. Wade Boggs was third in the AL with a .357 average. Marty Barrett was second on the team at .311. Clemens, not surprisingly, was 6-0 with a 2.60 ERA, while Bruce Hurst, pitching in some tough luck, was 3-3 and 2.75 with 5 complete games.
At the same time, the Mets were 22-8 and also led their division.
Mike Passanisi
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